Video of e-bikers popping wheelies on I-5 in San Diego highlights dangers

The risky behavior of some e-bikers and e-motorcyclists was captured in a social media post over the weekend. It shows a group of people popping wheelies while weaving in and out of traffic lanes on Interstate 5 through downtown San Diego.

A Rady Children’s Hospital study indicates that over the past four years, there’s been an exponential increase in trauma-related injuries involving e-bikes — from just three in 2021 to 262 in 2025.

Dr. Romeo Ignacio, the trauma medical director at Rady Children’s Hospital, has witnessed the injuries first-hand. He says that in addition to severe head injuries, they’re also seeing chest and organ injuries, as well as spleen or liver damage, because of how fast riders are going when a crash happens.

“That kind of acceleration going to a stationary object or an object that’s moving … It’s like hitting another wall or car, and that obviously leads to a lot of damage,” Ignacio said.

San Diego City Councilmember Raul Campillo is proposing rules that would mandate e-bike riders be 12 and older. And though he says his ordinance wouldn’t regulate the freeways, what the bikers were doing is already illegal.

The councilmember is hoping the safety education campaign launched with his proposed law would help curb dangerous behavior.

“What I’m seeing right now is a lot of fifth- and sixth-graders, kids that are 11 and younger, doing incredibly dangerous things,” Campillo said. “I don’t want them to suffer. I don’t want families to suffer. I want them to be safe, to get to school safely.”

Ignacio says he’s not against e-bikes — he just wants kids to have a safe, enjoyable time while riding them. But after being inside the operating room and seeing the trauma numbers skyrocket, he has a message for parents.

“I don’t want them to be in our emergency room, with the regret that they’ve gotten the wrong vehicle for their child,” Ignacio said. “Just think twice when you get a bike and making sure it’s the right decision for your child.”

Those 262 traumatic injuries treated at Rady Children’s last year don’t even take into account non-traumatic injuries, which would mean even more injuries occurred.

On Wednesday, the city council’s Public Safety Committee is scheduled to vote on Campillo’s e-bike ordinance. If it gets enough votes, it’ll go to the full council for discussion.

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